The Oscar-winningactor/producer/director and member of United Way of America’s Board

ofTrustees generously donated the bag to United Way to support hurricane

responseand recovery efforts.

The online auction of the transferable contents of Mr.

Clooney’s gift bag wasscheduled to close Tuesday, March 28, 2006 at 11:59 pm ET. The highvolume of bids in the closing minutes triggered a special feature

called “bidextension” that allowed bidding to continue in five minute

increments until nomore bids were received, resulting in the $45,100 winning amount.The auction took place at www.unitedway.org and was powered by cMarket.com. By auctioning the gift bag, United Way and Mr. Clooney hope to continue to focus attention on the long-term needs of the Gulf Coast areas devastated by the 2005hurricane season as well as raise funds for ongoing rebuilding and recoveryefforts.As a member of the Board of Trustees of United Way of America,

Mr.Clooney has been a generous supporter of United Way’s efforts to

rebuild lives and communities devastated by the 2005 hurricanes.***PLEASE CLICK ON THE TITLE LINK TO THE STORY TO FIND OUT WHAT WAS IN THE GIFT BAG***

B I G's family was awarded a $1.1 million settlement from city of Los Angeles, winning a police negligence suit brought against the department during the slain rapper's civil trial.click on title link for story...

GARY--Amid complaints that the Medicare part-D plan was hard to understand, the Medicare Rx bus with all of it's bells and whistles, made a stop Tuesday in Gary at the Genesis Convention Center.Many senior citizens seemed relieved at the answers they were given. Mary F. Hayes, 74, of Gary got a shock when she picked up her pricey name brand

hypertension medication last week. She had to pay a co-pay but thought her secondary insurance would prevent that. She said she never had to make a co-payment when

she was on the state's Medicare subscription program."Saturday I had to pay $30 co-pay for each but the (counselor) said that was not accurate," Hayes said. The counselor helped her find a better prescription drug plan.

Eddie Gray, 80, a SHIIP volunteer, said although it doesn't sound like much money, Hayes' insurance coverage has a "gap" in coverage. The money she saves now will help cover the gap later."When they pick up again, it will be with a lower co-payment. It's best to go ahead and enroll now," Gray said.

According to data released by the Health and Human Services Department in February, more than 51 percent of Medicare-eligible seniors already have signed up for the program."Some who retire find their health insurance plans aren't what they thought it would be," Fran Wersells, Region V program specialist for Administration on Aging, said.

Medicare Part A, pays for hospitalization, Part B, doctor and outpatient visits and Part D, prescription coverage. Enrollment for Part D, ends May 15. Enrollment won't open again until November 2007.Senior Health Insurance Information Program volunteers (SHIIP) are located at Methodist Hospital Northlake. Information may be obtained from the desk near the emergency room entrance. The hours of service are the first and third Tuesday of the month 10 a.m. to noon. Information about SHIIP, a free counseling service from the Indiana State Department of Insurance, may be obtained by calling 1-800-452-4800.

Some seniors, like Princie Kindred, had no coverage. Sometimes seniors believed they must pay for medicines out of their monthly social security checks.Wilma Wilson brought her mother, Barbara Palmer, on the suggestion of a neighbor, Wilson said. Her mother wasn't signed up for a program.The counselors and Senior Health Insurance Information Program volunteers, helped seniors either find an appropriate prescription drug program or explained how they could help save money on their out-of-pocket expenses for medications.Brenda Delgoto, of the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, warned that enrollment for Medicare Part D, closes May 15. She said sometimes unfortunate circumstances happen to otherwise healthy seniors, like accidents. Then they may need additional medicines, so it would be good to enroll.

Medicare prescription drug coverage provides protection for people who have very high drug costs but everyone with Medicare is eligible for coverage, regardless of income and resources.

Seniors can join a Medicare prescription drug plan or a Medicare Advantage Plan or other Medicare Health Plans that offer drug coverage.There is a monthly premium, which varies by plan, and a yearly deductible (no more than $250 in 2006). Depending on income, seniors may have to pay a part of the cost of prescriptions, including a co payment or coinsurance. Costs vary. Some plans may offer more coverage and additional drugs for a higher monthly premium.

Seniors on a limited income and have few resources may qualify for extra help, where they may not have to pay a premium or deductible.Almost 1 in 3 people with Medicare will qualify for extra help and Medicare will pay for almost all of their prescription drug costs, according to information from the Department of Health and Human Services. ###

Friday, March 24, 2006

"The crowd was noisy but sparse -- about 200 people in all. I asked a woman in the lobby about the Sun-Times boycott. She said, "The Sun-Times'll be all right until the Defender decides to become a real paper."PLEASE GO READ THE COLUMN BY CLICKING ON THE TITLE!

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Citing "competition with family love", Gary Mayor Scott King submitted his resignation Wednesday, during an hour-long press conference aired on the Comcast Government Access Channel.

King's resignation ends a 10-year reign.

King, the city's first white mayor in 28 years, said his resignation will become effective noon Friday.

"I have to do family first," he said.

He said he wanted to quit earlier, after struggling with the decision to enter his third term, when the property tax issue arose, he said.

King, the father of two daughters and a son, said the rigors of balancing family and work were too much, so he felt it best to resign. During reporters questions, he talked about how low mayoral salaries are.

"Right now I'm making more than the governor so it would be hard to get an increase there," he said. He inferred his "three stair step kids... who don't want to go to local college" put a strain on his household budget. He makes $107,000 a year--$87,000 from city and the balance from the Gary Sanitary District where he serves as special administrator mandated in a federal consent decree. King must serve in that position until another special administrator is named, he said.

However, King just sounded as he was tired of public scrutiny. He jokingly asked reporters to lose his home number and couldn't wait to say, "that's my personal business," in response to a reporter's question.

"The job is never done. It is a living organism. (However) the most rewarding experience is the sincerity the people of this community has accepted and respected and followed me as their mayor. Little kids know my name." King said.

He also answered questions on the airport and extending the runway and the changing face of Northwest Indiana, away from heavy industry."Development of the lakefront will get done," he said

He emphasized that a push from the private business sector is in line to cue up the city's economy.However political pundits take a different view of the issues surrounding King's resignation.

King jokingly mentioned in a response to a reporter's question, that if the state raises the pay of Governor of Indiana, "who knows" he might take a "run at it."

His wife, Irene King, said before the broadcast was abruptly ended while she was still answering questions, told a reporter that, "everything must change."

Newly appointed deputy mayor, Dozier T. Allen will assume the duties of mayor. King's term ends December 2007. Allen's official title is acting mayor, King said.

The position of deputy mayor won't be filled until the Democratic Caucus.

Allen, the former long-standing Calumet Township Trustee, told the audience that he has an understanding of how government works. He also said he has the wisdom of a 75-year-old man and the stamina of a 50-year-old man. He asked the city to pray for him.

"More important is a humble spirit and a kind heart," Allen said.Economic development and employment will be his major issue projects, Allen said.

"One large employer could solve that problem overnight. I'm interested in looking at every model that could serve this city,"Allen said. He also said he is impressed with the General Assembly's work, thus far.

"I have no fear of the Republican or Democratic party," he said, adding a person's personal philosophy is what it is. ###

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

I have been creating artwork and hanging existing artwork. It is an arduous labor of love. I majored in Graphic Design long ago at Indiana State University but was discouraged by my advisor at one point due to my lack of talent and inability to successfully complete an art perspectives class.However, at my own cost, I can fill my home with as much bad art all I want!

Guess what I found out...Friends television sitcom star, Jennifer Aniston is reportedly moving to Chicago to get away from all of the Hollywood noise.(And if you are wondering how I can shift gears from the Black People's Convention to showbiz dish--well go figure--I watch "Friend's" reruns too). One of Aniston's co-stars from "Friend's" is from the Chicago area and once met with Mayor of Chicago, Richard Daley. Guess which co-star! (hee hee heee)

Monday, March 13, 2006

by Leslie Jones McCloudTammi Davis, president of the Gary NAACP chapter, said in a speech Sunday about Hurricane Katrina victims that the country shouldn't be fooled by grandstanding. She drew a standing ovation.Davis made her comments on the last day of the The National Black Peoples Unity Convention 2006 held all week long at West Side High School in Gary, IN. It was the site of the first convention in 1972."I believe that one of the greatest challenges we face is making the Katrina relevant to all of us everywhere. The hurricane evacuees, like many of us, are victims of date rape by the same government that promised liberty and justice for all. Conjugal visits to New Orleans should not be interpreted as love but rather for just what it is - a booty call," Davis told the audience.She said Americans "should not allow ourselves to be prostituted by the political pimps who seek to exploit and disenfranchise," got a standing ovation and opened up the door for audience member's spirited questions.Davis said the NAACP formed an emergency response team of five individuals who worked with local agencies to assist 300 evacuees that were transported to Northwest Indiana.A progress report about the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations outlined an investment plan to ensure the hurricane ravaged area is revitalized.Davis pointed out in her speech that the NAACP formed a call to action that recommends, among other things, an assurance that displaced families will have the right to return to the Gulf Coast region, rebuild and reconnect families and children, establish $100 billion Family Reconstruction fund, provide mental and physical health assistance, legal and voting protection, ensure that local residents get first choice at jobs and contracts in the rebuilding efforts.Her three minute speech wrapped up what some conveners considered a revision of greatness, however, the National Black Peoples Unity Convention 2006 was never meant to mimic the 1972 National Black Political Convention - and it didn't.Instead, conveners discussed another way to get ahead in this country - through economic equity.West Side High School in Gary, Ind. was met by an array of Black business, political, civic, labor and economic leaders there to discuss the plight of African Americans and chart a course to change the condition of Black communities nationwide.Among those speaking: Revs. Jesse Jackson Sr. and Al Sharpton, Minister Louis Farrakhan, NAACP CEO Bruce Gordon, SCLC President Emeritus Rev. Dr. Joseph Lowery, and others.During the last 34 years since the last convening of African American politicians and activists, there has been an increase in their ranks from 900 in the 1970s to about 16,000 in 2006, the Rev. Walter Fauntroy said."We should be farther along - all considered," he said.Fauntroy, a president of the National Black Leadership Roundtable, was joined Saturday by former Colorado Lt. Gov. George Brown, the first Black lieutenant governor in the country; former Gary mayor Richard Hatcher, the country's first Black mayor and former Los Angeles councilman, David Cunningham, in the green room behind the stage inside the school auditorium. He was joined by a few other of his peers who were either at or influenced by the convention 34 years ago.The discussions were lively and informative."Back then they told the people to go home and run for anything even if it was for dog catcher," Brown said.But if there is no economic parity, success is muted."If there is no money then where are we now? We are at the point where economic empowerment is out of the game," Fauntroy said.He said that between 1965 and 1971 four million new Black voters were added. Harking back to the glory days of the Civil Rights Movement when Blacks were beaten and jailed for the right to vote, Fauntroy added, "imminent danger fueled the agenda to empower people to want to vote."Today, the battlefield is economic. All of the men in the room agreed blacks need to be as unified in this struggle as he believes they were in 1972. Brown chimed in, "we need unity without uniformity." "We hope to make same kind of progress in our ability to control the billion of dollars that African-Americans spend as consumers every year--to make it more beneficial to African-Americans. One of the things we learned is that it is not enough to win political office and exercise political power. At the base of everything that takes place in this country is money and at this point African-Americans have been systematically excluded from that arena," Hatcher said.He said the organizers of the convention hope to derive strategies to achieve a fair share of the dollars."Blacks have to learn that it's not how much you make but how much you keep," Hatcher said.As a group, those involved with the beginning of what is known black power movement, saw the end to apartheid, an increase in black voters and Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday as a national holiday."Lots of people came out of here with the capacity and authority to work," Cunningham said.But blacks need to have more philanthropy, sharing and empowerment Brown said.Conveners liked the ideas discussed."I thought it was very thought provoking...this was a great opportunity for us to come together to talk about the impact globally nationally and locally to our people and to put a plan together which---I think is important. This is just the first step in us coming together... to talk about where we need to be," J. Allen Johnson of Gary, said.Conveners also said the thought-provoking discussions inspired them to want to take action on the home front."I liked the educational part about out youth. They are going to form a coalition to make sure our children are educated and that there is health care for the poor, blacks and brown in this country. I learned that we are the poorest among us and that we are being left behind and that if we don't do something, we are going to be extinct. They were talking about how to do it," Georgianna S. Gonzer, a psychiatric nurse from New Jersey, said. She said they drove to Gary for the convention because she heard it was a historical event."We heard the convention in 1972 was very great," she said. Unlike the first convention, there will be no final documents like

the "Black National Political Agenda," Brown said, but there will be meetings and committees formed so that the discussion may continue on how to further advance black economic power."When Harold Washington was mayor, we created Black millionaires all over the country. Political power without economic power is meaningless. There are people who are smart enough to run a nation with what they know," Fauntroy said.

Friday, March 10, 2006

A $1,000 bonus for referring recruit applicants announced by the Army in January, expanded recently to include more soldiers who are eligible to receive this payment.This latest recruiting incentive will pay soldiers for referring applicants who enlist, complete basic training, and graduate advanced individual training. The referral must be made by the soldier at the U.S. Army web site prior to the new recruit’s first meeting with a recruiter.The incentive is a pilot program included as one of the provisions in the Fiscal Year 2006 National Defense Authorization Act. Dates of eligibility for the referral bonus are Jan. 1, 2006, through Dec. 31, 2007. The Army is now authorized to pay a bonus to any Soldier who refers to an Army recruiter a person who has not previously served in the Armed Forces and enlists in either the Active Army, Army National Guard or the Army Reserves. The referral may not be an immediate family member and the soldier referring may not be serving in a recruiting or retention assignment."Soldiers continue to play an important role in the recruiting process and with this program we are able to recognize their contributions,” Lt. Gen. Franklin L. Hagenbeck, Deputy Chief of Staff, Army G-1 (Personnel), said.“We thank Congress for their recent legislation to provide bonuses such as these,” Hagenbeck said.The Referral Bonus Pilot Program includes Soldiers performing duties in the Hometown Recruiter Assistance Program (HRAP), Special Recruiter Assistance Program (SRAP), and the Active Duty for Special Work (ADSW). For more information about this pilot incentive program, visit the U.S. Army web site or call 1-800-223-3735, ext. 6-0473.

Wednesday, March 08, 2006

Jamie Foxx should produce a Christmas CD. I want to hear him this Christmas 2006 singing some Donnie Hathaway and some original Christmas music he arranged and wrote himself. He has such a soulful voice.I want Kanye West to remake "Hurry Up This Way Again" by the Stylistics on a single. I know he can hit those notes and look good doing it.Maybe they will both come over to my house to sing to me, instead.I can cook and I got some yak....Let it flow let it flow ohh ohhh ohhhh ohhh...

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

I've been wondering all week about why Iraq is edging towards a civil war. This Detroit Free Press editorial explains it.Isn't this what this country does? Turmoil is always in the air somewhere in the Middle East. Haven't the people of this world been engaged in some kind of conflict for years?The U.S. will teach these people to live in relative harmony but first must enhance their culture so that they can accept the American Way.There are all kinds of checks and balances in our culture so that no one group imposes their will on another--thusly the Melting Pot theory.Send some psychologists and social workers over there to help before they drain all of the resources from our communities, please.

If you've ever heard of the phrase champagne taste on a beer budget, you've found me. I make soap from scratch because regular soap does not agree with my skin, I recreate restaurant meals at home, create appliances I cannot install or afford (yet,) and in general, I figure out a way from no way. I pray a lot too. Join me on my journey. It will be fun.

Everything you see me do is for entertainment purposes only. All of my experiments are for my purposes only. It's fun to watch.

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William James McCloud III

I hadn't heard anything on the Fourth of July holiday and that was strange. I had the urge to call the day before but since I have a history of being pushy, I let it go.
On the fifth, my birthday, it was my obligation to find out what was going on. It wasn't like Bill to not want to light firecrackers with little Billy on the holiday--it was a yearly debate.
I hoped he wasn't in jail. Illness had not crossed my mind. I thought he was the picture of good health but the things we think can be wrong.
Lauren's Birthday party June 14--the last time we were all together.
He was in the hospital.
William James McCloud III died July 15, 11 days after entering the hospital--after telling his wife Jennifer he wasn't feeling well.
Bill left work early that Wednesday, after consuming an energy drink. Apparently he was having a heart attack. His arteries were blocked.
Bill was only 38 years old. His birthday is next month and his mother tells me a big celebration had been planned.
Bill was my husband. He is the father of my two children. Even though we decided to live separate lives, we still cared for each other. We cared enough to let each other live in peace and stop the fighting. We got along because we wanted to.
Now, he is gone and I feel my former better half has left me alone. When in personal crisis, he was my go-to-guy.
Goodbye, Bill you are loved and I will make you proud and bring honor to your good name.
In Love,
Lauren, Billy and Leslie

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